Parallel Education
The mainstream systems in our country have failed to deliver its services with efficiency and competence. The unscrupulous, negligent and unethical measures adopted by these established structures have resulted in a disintegration of our faith in the same. Hence, parallel systems are now mandated in every field, making them indispensable to our survival. While these parallel arrangements create a feeling of stability and protection, they pose a threat with fierce implications. As the German poet and philosopher, Friedrich Schiller, aptly quoted, “Do you think the lion was sleeping because he didn’t roar?”
This menace permeates the educational landscape of our country under the guise of “tuitions”, “coaching classes”, and “after school sessions”. Even though we have accepted the proverb “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”, we continue to implement the essence of the same in our practices. We have dismissed the need for work to be interspersed with rest for meaningful learning. We seem convinced that the learning opportunities provided within a seven-hour frame at school is insufficient and unsuccessful in equipping our children with the necessary skills, understanding and tools required for functioning as value creating citizens. We warrant the need for such extra classes as reinforcement, practice and providing our kids with the ‘extra edge’ for success. After all, learning is measured in relation to the other rather than self as competition forms the crux of every educational endeavour.
Like other parallel systems, what starts out as a privilege eventually becomes a necessity. These additional classes are now a mandated element of the learning process, without which one will have to forfeit triumph! Demand breeds supply. A natural consequence of the increased appetite for greater learning opportunities has led to a surge of teachers and institutes offering the same. These tutors who began by amplifying learning for students, slowly evolved into an equivalent to schoolwork and ultimately progressed to an alternative, preferred format since it was targeted, rigorous and served its purpose of ensuring academic success (as measured by standardized examinations). The over-reliance on these corresponding forms of education by parents and students alike has had an adverse impact on the prevailing, conventional structures.
The repercussion of these additional approaches to learning has adversely affected teachers and student’s motivation, drive and passion. The dependency on after-school support structures has snipped the creativity of lesson delivery in classrooms, resulting in poor pedagogical practices. These half-hearted educational attempts in institutes contradict the elaborate visions conceived by policymakers and leaders within the sphere. In our country, the teaching profession has been deemed as the last option to other esteemed preferences and teachers continue to draw meagre salaries. Consequently, the coexistence of parallel learning spaces has had the most appreciable influence on teachers as it provides them with significant lucrative options.
Moreover, the dearth of first-rate teachers in India due to the poor standards of teacher education and lack of professional development opportunities has raised the market value of the existing lot. The heightened demand for these teachers has sparked another fire. The teachers are allowed to make preposterous demands from students and parents, such as elevated fees, prior yearly payments and a two to three-year commitment in advance. Moreover, the deficiency of teachers has led to a shift from private one on one session to group teaching formats, resembling a mini classroom. Consequently, the cutthroat competition among students is snowballing at a phenomenal pace and parents are now wrestling to provide their children with both, formal education at school and another outside school. If students fail to join the bandwagon they will be denied the same opportunities for success as their peers. This only serves to further perpetuate the fear of losing and engages everyone in the race.
Even though our children are now spending the first seven hours of the day at school and the later three to four hours in tuition classes, we are refusing to contest the same. As a culture, we have adopted this parallel system as a requisite like other systems in our country, refusing to acknowledge its influence on all stakeholders involved as well as the larger system at stake. We are comfortable with these concurrent forms of education, as we believe it is a requirement for academic success. As a result, we are willing to sacrifice our children’s mental, emotional and physical wellbeing so that we can continue to stay with the herd.
It is time for parents and students to use their voices, collaboratively unite and recalibrate the system. Instead of living as victims in a parallel system, let us rise up collectively and claim our role as protagonists in this battle for improved learning opportunities. When parents and students rise up united to demand the provisions promised by the mainstream institutions and refuse to promote these alternative arrangements, a reformation will be initiated. Even though the road is long and the path will be filled with boulders of varying shapes and sizes, we must remember the quote by Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world!”
